EghtesadOnline: Major Iranian steelmakers exported a total of 3.51 million tons of semi-finished and finished steel products during the first six months of the current fiscal year (March 21-Sept. 22) to register a year-on-year contraction of 1.3%.

The Iranian Mines and Mining Industries Development and Renovation Organization released the above data.

The mills shipped out 380,254 tons of steel during the sixth month of the year (Aug. 23-Sept. 22), which signified a downturn of 36.9% compared with the same month of the year before.

➢ ESCO Ramps Up Monthly Production

Esfahan Steel Company (ESCO) was comfortably Iran's biggest steel exporter during the sixth month of the current year, as it transported 104,148 tons of products to showcase a year-on-year growth of 42%, Financial Tribune reported.

Rebar exports accounted for the majority of the company's growth during the sixth month, as the export of 19,242 tons indicated a massive 1,439% growth. Beam exports, amounting to 20,325 tons, saw the second-highest growth of 210% YOY.

From a six-month perspective, rebar and beam exports also registered YOY growths of 33% and 30% and amounted to 106,344 tons and 73,021 tons respectively.

However, a considerable decline in exports of products listed as "other" and coil, meant that ESCO's exports actually declined by 14% YOY during the first half of the current year. The aforesaid exports reached 252,486 tons and 21,132 tons respectively, showing yearly contractions of 48% and 41%.

➢ Mobarakeh on Top in H1

During the first half of the current year, Mobarakeh Steel Company (MSC), also located in Esfahan, was the only company to showcase year-on-year growth in shipments.

The company, the largest steelmaker of the Middle East and North Africa region, and one of the largest industrial complexes operating in Iran, exported 663,650 tons of products during this year's H1 to register a notable 55% YOY growth.

At 370,987 tons signaling a yearly growth of 151%, hot-rolled coil was the single exported product responsible for the company's growth since all other exports were noticeably lower.

During the sixth month of the current year alone, MSC joined all other steel heavyweights in Iran in registering annual declines, but to a much lesser degree. It shipped out 61,575 tons, which was only 1% lower than its exports in the corresponding period of the previous year.

During the sixth month, the company's CRC exports fell by 70% to 3,241 tons whereas its HRC exports reached 55,930 to show a YOY growth of 73%.

➢ Khouzestan Exports Down

Khouzestan Steel Company, another major exporter, experienced annual declines both during the sixth month of the current year and during the first half of the year.

All of KSC's exported products, namely bloom, billet and slabs, declined significantly. The company exported 47,247 bloom, 10,190 tons of billet, and 29,827 tons of slabs during the sixth month of the current year. Those numbers were down by 53%, 91% and 51% respectively compared with the sixth month of the year before. They amounted to a 63% YOY decline in total exports during that month.

In the six-month period, KSC exported 346,780 tons of bloom, 291,027 tons of billet and 559,923 tons of slabs. The figures showed contractions of 51% and 18% and a rise of 69% respectively compared with H1 to bring the company's total exports to about 1.19 million tons, down by 14% YOY.

The steelmaker, located in the southwestern Khuzestan Province, exports to over a dozen countries.

About half of the exports goes to the Middle East and North Africa region. Other major export destinations are located in the Far East and Americas.

➢ Other Producers

During the sixth month of the current year, almost all other producers, including South Kaveh Steel Company and Hormozgan Steel Company, registered downturns.

The former exported 54,000 tons of billet, which were down by 23% compared to its exports in the corresponding period of the year before and the latter shipped out 41,797 tons of slab, down by 73% YOY.

Khorasan Steel Company exported 15,141 tons of bloom, almost unchanged compared to last year, and 12,594 tons of rebar, up by 1,593% YOY.

During the first half of the current year, only South Kaveh and Khouzestan Oxin Steel Company registered higher exports. South Kaveh shipped out 419,000 tons of billet, up by 14% YOY while Oxin exported 13,340 sheets, up by 234% YOY.